Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?

How do you have a good, quality conversation with an existing client or new prospect in our current climate, and quite frankly, how should you have been having these conversations all along?

I discovered quite a while back, and had this reinforced recently, that one answer to this question is to find out what their pain points are. A good way to do this is through probing by asking ‘why’ multiple times. Then…shut your mouth and listen. Good things come to those that listen.

I’ve been told by asking the question ‘why’ 5 times from the initial question you will arrive to the true root of the pain point or issue. One you get here; you can really dig into problem solving before you consider offering quality solutions. It’s only after getting to the root cause you can really connect to start developing and offering compelling content back to your client or customer.

The ‘why’ technique is defined as an iterative, interrogative approach used to explore the cause and effect relationships underlying a specific problem. Each ‘why’ answer forms the basis of the next question and so on as you travel to the root cause. (Thank you Wikipedia)

A great tip for starting these types of conversations is to be sure you are creating a comfortable environment. Whether in person, on the phone or via some virtual platform it is paramount in this discovery process. Doing this with a blameless approach keeps discussions more open, honest and allows for the best feedback as you work towards final solutions.

Keep in mind not all problems have a single root cause. So goes the saying “opening a can of worms”. Doesn’t have to be negative. Using this method repeatedly and asking a different sequence of questions each time will help the exploratory and deep dive process.

There are no hard and fast rules on this particular technique. It can go in so many different directions and offer solutions and uncover things you never thought would be a possible root cause. The outcome truly depends on the persistence, knowledge and contributions given by all who are involved. Make sure they’re comfortable and you’ll gain much more benefit from the process.

So, as you navigate the constantly changing landscape out there, start asking more ‘why’ questions. I would imagine uncovering new ideas, truths and approaches will all come to the top. Keep asking more questions and listen. If you’d like to practice this technique, let me know and we can have a conversation. I promise I’ll listen.